carnage

[ kahr-nij ]

noun

1. the slaughter of a great number of people, as in battle; butchery; massacre.
2. fighting or other violence:

   brutal carnage on the football field.

3. great damage, utter defeat, or chaos:

   We are charting a way forward after the Election Day carnage.

4. Archaic. dead bodies, as of those slain in battle.

carnage

/ ˈkɑːnɪdʒ /

noun

1. extensive slaughter, esp of human beings in battle

Word History and Origins

Origin of carnage¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Middle French, from Italian carnaggio, from Medieval Latin carnāticum “payment or offering in meat,” equivalent to Latin carn- (stem of carō ) “flesh” + -āticum noun sufffix; -age

Word History and Origins

Origin of carnage¹

C16: from French, from Italian carnaggio, from Medieval Latin carnāticum, from Latin carō flesh

Example Sentences

Despite several gunshot wounds, the three Phommatheps survived the mass shooting, the third in a series of unrelated acts of carnage across the U.S.

From Los Angeles Times

What's top of mind as she witnesses the carnage of the last year is "a lot of just anger and frustration and sadness because it doesn't have to be this way," Romman said.

From Salon

I witnessed the carnage of the Hamas massacre, and I have been covering the subsequent war in Gaza for Fox News over the past 12 months.

From Los Angeles Times

He said France had not heeded warnings of impending carnage and had for too long "valued silence over examination of the truth", but said his country had not been an accomplice in the killings.

From BBC

Rather than running away from the scene of the carnage he had caused, he appeared calm, as if he knew exactly what he was doing.

From BBC

Related Words

• bloodshed
• butchery
• crime
• havoc
• killing
• mass murder
• slaughter
• slaying
• warfare